The book starts with a prologue, which to be frank, I didn't quite see the point of. While it begins to build the mythology, having now finished the book I don't think it adds anything that isn't further explored or clarified within the story. I then found the next few chapters confusing and disorientating. I understood that there were two narratives, one that follows Gordon Black from birth and another which follows Megan Maurice. Gordon's narrative takes place during our time frame in, whereas I wasn't sure at first when Megan's story was happening.

The story really starts to take off when Mr Keeper comes to visit Megan's parents and explains that Megan has been chosen by the Crowman to be a keeper. Up until this point the two stories seem unconnected and disparate, but as the reader accompanies Megan in her training we begin to realise that in actual fact the stories are intricately linked. At this point Gordon's story also begins to take off as he is faced with trial after trial as he is is driven by the desperate goal of saving his family.

Once I understood how linked the stories were it was interesting to see other connections and contrasts. For instance the pace of Megan's story is quite calm and peaceful, whereas Gordon's is filled with tension. Gordon's narrative is in the past tense (a clue I missed at the beginning), whereas Megan's is present, it's happening as we read. It is a strength of the writing that I didn't actually notice this difference at first. I say this because writing bad present tense is easier than you think.

I found the pace of the book quite slow, but in a good way. When I think about what actually happened there isn't an awful lot, but what did happen was this gradual build up of knowledge of the Crowman mythology. I liked the fact that this entity was not black or white. When I think of traditional descriptions of evil and good, it's all rather clear-cut, whereas in reality it's never like that. Part of the Crowman mythology is a great respect for the land. In a way it's almost quite fervent, but what makes it so believable is that in journeying with Gordon we live through his change and his growing understanding of how we should respect the land. His moment of realisation is quite revealing in that he choses to use certain words, which he had been feeling, but in a way was too embarrassed to use before.

The two characters development was also interesting. We start with Gordon from birth, but the reader really gets to know him when the trouble with the Ward begins. We felt his fear and powerlessness as he begins to go on the run. Gordon is never described as a gung-ho and off on a quest. He is troubled and never knows if he is doing the right thing. He is weak and strong in equal measure, he fights for his life and is vengeful. But most of all we see him developing.

Megan's character was a little more shaky. She started off quite babyish and then matured very quickly. Given the immense task she has been given, I guess this is realistic, but that was probably part of the confusion I felt with the first quarter of the book. After she has entered the weave for the first time and begins to understand her task, her character develops a little more clearly.

Two other recurring characters are Pike and Skelton who are members of the Ward trying to capture Gordon. I wasn't too sure about these two, at first they were just the baddies, but as we spend more time with Skelton became a little stereotypical, which is a shame, as the mythology of the book is anything but and plays on being multifaceted. I'm not sure about Pike yet, or even what he is. I suppose this idea of the ward is also a recurring character and one that I wasn't always a hundred percent comfortable with. Perhaps it's because they are being seen and described by a fourteen year old boy, but their ideology seemed a little simplistic to me and I wondered how they could have gained so much power.

Generally, the review is a bit mixed. There were things I didn't like, but on the whole I really liked a lot more. I found this book made me think more than scared me. There are scenes of horror within the book, but part of what makes it horrific is that is all things described could happen. There were a few bits that had my eyebrows arching (in Chapter 65) and raised a lot of questions (such as the concept of the Ward), but on the whole I really liked the world-building and myth making. I was completely sucked into Megan's world and Gordon's story enough to want to know what happens in the next book. The ending left us on a cliff and I'm not sure where the book is going to go, but I kind of like that. I liked the writing and the descriptions were beautiful (even when describing horror). This book is not an easy read, there are things that challenge your way of thinking without being preachy.

I don't normally read post-apocalyptic stories so I was surprised to come across this in my to-read pile. I don't know what I was thinking when I bought it, but I'm glad I did. I found it an intriguing tale (although is did start to drag a little towards the end) and remarkably upbeat given the subject matter. Looking forward to seeing how it ends.

Do we have a prophet in our midst? Because this D'Lacey guy seems to have a strong grasp on how crappy humanity is right now. Add that to this artful warping of it into a post apocalyptic timeline of biblical proportions and I have a massive mind f*ck going on. Albeit, a glorious one. I mean jeez, do you know how hard it is to do something related to God/angels/Satan and make it original AND good at the same time? Damn difficult from my experiences. Just…wow. How long is this series? I need the predecessors.

Yeah, guys.....?

I'm kind of ashamed to say I didn't totally enjoy this book. I had to keep telling myself "keep chugging on, keep chugging through."

So many of the reviewers I follow and love, adored this book. I cannot begin to see why.

It's intense. Yes. Intense.

Guys it has no climax!!! I mean, yes, but no. NO! Not really, it's kind of like swimming in the lazy river, you enjoy it immensely, but there is only so many times you can go 'round and 'round and then you want to get the hell out.

Read the Review on TFF: http://thefoundingfields.com/2013/03/black-dawn-black-feathers-joseph-dlacey-book-review-bane-kings/.

“A brilliant take on the post apocalyptic genre. Creepy, unnerving and page-turning, D’Lacey creates a compelling story with some fasnicating characters.” ~The Founding Fields


There are several genres that I need to read more of and the post-apocalyptic genre is one of them. Black Feathers is the first novel in the Black Dawn Duology from Angry Robot Books and after hearing positive reviews about it, I leapt at the chance to read and review it from NetGalley. The book itself is very interesting, with an original plot and some awesome characters, who really are three dimensional and develop over the course of this book. If you’re a fan of post apocalyptic novels then Black Feathers is one you’ll certainly want to join the ride for.

"It is the Black Dawn, a time of environmental apocalypse, the earth wracked and dying.

It is the Bright Day, a time long generations hence, when a peace has descended across the world.

In each era, a child shall be chosen. Their task is to find a dark messiah known only as the Crowman. But is he our saviour – or the final incarnation of evil?

File Under: Fantasy [ The Crowman | Joined Through Time | The Last Keeper | The Journey Begins ]"

Black Feathers by Joseph D’Lacey is a very interesting read. Split between multiple narrators, told in third person, the first book in the Black Dawn Duology establishes a compelling world and thrusts the reader into an grimdark atmosphere where nobody is safe. This book is great for horror fans and really keeps you entertained right the way through, with several scenes that raise the tension and make this book one of the most unpredictable novels that I’ve read in 2013 so far.

Gordon Black is a character who takes up a bulk of the narratives and is a very interesting character to tell the story from. We start the book when he’s a baby, in the opening act that establishes the tone of the book to come. It’s dark, gritty and atomspheric – nowhere is truly safe, and Joseph D’Lacey creates a chilling vision of a post-apocalyptic future. Throughout the first book there are lots of hints that Gordon is more than your average kid and it really shows just how his life is affected following the aftermath of his life getting shattered by the new Police Force in Britain called the Ward. His arc of the story is among the most compelling in the book, and we find ourselves wanting to get behind Gordon and support him.

The next character in the book is different to Gordon again, and what I found when reading the book from Megan Maurice’s story arc, becoming a keeper of knowledge - it felt different from Gordon Black’s arc, as though it was almost a young adult book in places. But Megan’s arc is still engaging and her tale is very interesting indeed, and like the rest of the book – quite original. Whilst her arc may at time seem YA, it doesn’t raise the tone of the book at all and even though the characters are different it is clear that they are both in the same novel, and as a result – the pace never changes between the two narratives.

The mystery underlining throughout the entire book is the Crowman, a mystery that I think is prehaps the greatest in Black Feathers. All along, we’re left wondering is he a force of good or evil? D’Lacey keeps the mystery hanging and I will be looking forward to see how he can wrap up the duology in the second act, which I will certainly be sticking around for.

Both acts of the novel take place in different timeframes, and Gordon’s is closer to the present in a post-apocalyptic setting, and Megan’s is even further into the future than Gordon’s. One thing is for sure that D’Lacey’s world is one that I certainly wouldn’t want to live in – but it’s one that I really love exploring. You can count me in for Book 2.

VERDICT: 4/5

A great mystery, great characters and some interesting worldbuilding help make Black Feathers one of the strongest debuts so far in 2013.

Gordon is born in October 2000, strange things happen and his parents seem to treat him different from his two sisters. As he hits teenage years, the world is crumbling - people are starving, the weather is destroying the earth, people have lost respect for the earth and take all she gives for granted. Many years in the future (you never find out how many), a girl sees the Crowman which means she has been marked as a Keeper - the Keepers tell the story of Gordon Black, a child linked to the Crowman. Both their lives are intertwined despite them being lived many years apart.

I really, really enjoyed this. The two stories are told alongside each other and we learn things from both sides about the other side. The devastation happening during Gordon's life has been passed in Megan's (the future Keeper) time and people have learned from the mistakes of the past.

There's an complete mystery surrounding the Crowman and what Gordon's connection to him is. There are bad guys after Gordon so they can stop whatever it is that is going to happen if he meets the Crowman. We don't actually know who the Crowman is - the devil? A saviour? Good or bad? Because of all this, I cannot WAIT to read the next book in this series.

I highly recommend this to any fans of horror, post-apocalyptic type books. Loved it, loved it - I want the next one already.

*impatiently awaits the 2nd book*

Probably being generous giving it two stars. Just a big old blah feeling while reading. Could have been a hundred pages shorter.

My full review is here:
http://wildersbookreview.blogspot.com/2013/02/black-feathers-by-joseph-dlacey.html

This is the first book in a series (of two, at the time of this review) and I received a free copy through Netgalley.com of the second book. In order to be fair, I had to read the first one. Besides, I hate jumping in on a series in the middle.

The description doesn't share much, so possible spoilers may appear in my rambling. This is the start of an apocalyptic story that takes place in two different times. The more future side brings us to the way of the Keepers, their job being to bring the people to share in the Earth, and other environmental idealisms, as well as protect/share the knowledge of the Crowman, who happens to be basically the messiah of the times. In being a Keeper, they are to train the next one, in this case a female, seeming the first. In becoming one with the essence of the Crowman, this girl is charged with writing His story, which takes us back to a period of time similar to 50 years prior to our current time (a guess from what I recall reading).

The majority of the tale is of Gordon Black, a young man that was born into the world with seemingly bad omens. At a young age, the world has had some sort of major change, and a group called the Ward, have basically taken over the world, not being more in-tune with nature, and seemingly Nazi-like in how they run things. Gordon's family is taken, he luckily is able to elude capture, and in order to save his family, he seeks out the Crowman.

Interspersed in the telling of his story, there are bits of Megan (the female Keeper in training) and how she is coming in the ways of the Keepers, and revealing that there may be more to her than what any expected.

That all being said, as void of detail as I could, the book started off slow, but pulled me by making me want to know what is going to happen to both these main characters, and those around them. As soon as I finished, I started in on the second book, and have not been able to put it down in the small bit of spare time I have to read. It is more than just a "coming of age" story, but holds many similarities of self-growth, but also has some strong environmental idealism. Great read!